BHUBANESWAR/RANCHI: There is something extraordinary about Droupadi Murmu, the ruling NDA nominee for the Presidential polls due July 18. First, look at what Mamata Banerjee, who had called a meeting of Opposition leaders on the selection of the Presidential candidate on June 30, has said. “The BJP asked for our suggestion but did not tell us who its nominee was,” she said while acknowledging Murmu has a better chance of winning.
)Most opposition leaders have already endorsed Murmu’s nomination, paving the way for her to become the first tribal President of the country. The Janata Dal (S) and Shiromani Akali Dal have openly come out in support of Murmu. “She already has sufficient backing and does not need our support, but she has nevertheless asked for our support, and that is a sign of her goodness,” said JD(S) leader and former Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. He said he understood Murmu’s “life journey, her background, the struggles she has undergone, her rise from a downtrodden community.”
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal met Murmu in Chandigarh. “She (Murmu) has emerged as a symbol of the poor and tribal segments in the country,” read a resolution passed by the SAD’s top leadership. The Congress has remained unimpressed, though, saying Murmu would be a rubber stamp President. Yashwant Sinha too has spoken about a “thinking and speaking” person to be the occupant of Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Amid the debate, here’s how Murmu’s CV reads: Date of birth: June 20, 1958. Place of birth: Ichhaghatu village under Kusumi block of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district. Parents: Sanga Tudu & Biranchi Narayan Tudu. Tribal affiliation: Santhal. On all counts, she is going to be India’s first citizen, the ‘first lady.’
Murmu already has many firsts to her credit: she was the first woman and first tribal leader from Odisha appointed as Governor of any state. She was the first woman Governor of Jharkhand and the first Governor to complete her tenure.